Eponymously Yours, W. Skeffington Higgins

You may know that I am fond of a performer I saw often in my childhood: The Banana Man.

He appeared from time to time on Captain Kangaroo, the long-running morning show. I have been frustrated to find that most of my contemporaries don't remember him. He had a very strange act that is hard to describe.

For years I quested, through libraries and across the Net, to gain a few hard-won facts about TBM. Eventually, in 2004, polyfrog was able to obtain a VHS tape so I could see a performance once again. This was a glorous experience.

Well, perhaps all things eventually come to Youtube. (Until the takedown notice arrives-- I arrived too late to view the infographic opening from The Kingdom recommended by various blogs a few weeks ago).

The original Banana Man was Al Robins, who toured the vaudeville stages of America. Here he surfaces as "The Walking Music Shop" in Seeing Red, a 1939 short film emceed by Red Skelton. There don't seem to be any bananas in sight. Maybe they came later.



Al Robins, a gifted propmaker, eventually sold his act to Sam Levine, who was the Banana Man I saw on TV in the Sixties. Here's a Captain Kangaroo appearance, claimed to be from 1969. (I am surprised it is that late.)



Now you can see what I was raving about all these years.

Your headquarters for Banana Man scholarship is Rhett Bryson's excellent site. Don't miss Joe Lee's recollection of TBM in comic form.